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Buy4Store Finds New Ways To Serve Retailers

Jul 1, 2011

While some wholesalers may do a single thing well, Buy4Store.com is continually refining new and multiple ways to provide profitable opportunities to its retailer buyers. The company has acquired the habit of adapting many successful business strategies to its business model. Metin Kilic, Buy4Store's president, explains that the company started small and then grew. "I started to sell belt buckles in a shopping center eight years ago," he recalls. Experience taught Kilic how to merchandise a mall kiosk and sell it correctly. He wanted to share that experience with other retailers, and now he offers starter kits and advice for five different "cart concepts."

Kiosk Starter Kits
Buy4Store offers kiosk or mall cart start-up packages on its website, including one focused on Murano glass pendants, and others around belt buckles, fashion bracelets, belts, and magic hair clips. "We have pictures of the carts and kiosks," says Kilic. "Because we are retail-focused, we know what business owners need. We know their expenses and expectations. That helps us communicate clearly with our customers." Each starter kit costs $2,000. "We know what the best sellers are, and we customize the kits for new customers. They get our products, start their own businesses, and with our suggestions they have a higher chance to be successful," Kilic explains.

A Wide Range Of Products
The company's online expansion, however, does not just specialize in mall cart starter kits. "We established Buckletown.com, and decided to sell belt buckles wholesale all over the United States," says Kilic. "Then our customers started asking about other fashion products. They wanted to know what other products we could recommend to them." Buy4Store began a product category expansion that now covers the fashion gamut, from jewelry to handbags to accessories, ties and suspenders. The company has also branched out to name card holders, solar toys, as well as displays and fixtures. The common thread? A keen sense of what customers want now, and what they will want tomorrow. "You can sell wholesale for any product, but if you do not know what is selling in the market, you will always be behind. We concentrate on hot products and fashion products. Customers always call us and ask, ?What is selling? What do you think we should sell?'," Kilic mentions. "We stay on top of the trends, and we send them monthly emails about fashion trends and items."

One example is the hot trendy product called Murano glass. "None of our customers knew about Murano glass. We informed them about it, and over 1,000 locations began to sell the product," says Kilic. He encourages customers to bring hot product ideas to him as well, and he does his best to supply them at the lowest possible cost. But don't ask him for counterfeit goods. "As long as they are not knock-offs, because we don't sell knock-off merchandise, we bring in the products," he adds. Kilic continues to keep his finger on the pulse of the fashion industry. What hot products are coming up? "The next hot trend is European jewelry," he says, and scarves are an up and comer too. "We are very competitive on prices on scarves."

Website Evolution
Buy4Store is also adapting to the evolution of ecommerce. "The Internet is very important to our business," mentions Kilic. "The world is changing, and it's a global world. To be competitive in the market, you have to pay attention to your website." That attention includes a willingness to try new sites and revamp existing ones. For example, the company recently added information on state fairs. "This is very important information," says Kilic, "because we are trying to give information to our customers that they can use to be successful." Looking out for customers and giving them money-making opportunities is second nature to Kilic. "Festivals are a big opportunity to make money," he explains. "Hundreds of thousands of people are going to different festivals, and they are going to have fun and spend money. Set up your booth and you can make a lot of sales."

Another website innovation is Buy4Store's online customer survey. "Polling customers increases customer satisfaction," says Kilic. "If you survey your customers, work and talk with them, that makes them happy. So long as your customers are happy and making money, they will come back." Buy4Store puts actual wholesale prices online, for anyone to see without registration or other barriers. "We are targeting very low profit margins, and concentrating on volume sales. We are not tricking our customers," explains Kilic. "There are lots of wholesale sites that do not put their prices out there. We tell customers that we have a $150 minimum, and these are our prices. You are welcome to order items from us."

Buy4Store is looking to add more unique features to its website. Soon, products on the site will feature barcodes. "Retailer customers will be able to place orders, then put the product in their system. They can just scan the product and they will see the prices," notes Kilic. "However, we are still exploring different ways to develop this." The company plans to explore the franchise business, seeking partners to start-up frozen yogurt businesses called SlimBerry, and massage machine setups that mall shoppers can enjoy while they shop.

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